23.04.2026 TransTrans Exhibition

Thursday, 23.04.2026, 18.30

Seminarraum 6 (EG), Fakultätszentrum für transdisziplinäre historisch-kulturwissenschaftliche Studien, Kolingasse 14-16, 1090 Vienna

F*GG LAB: Geschlecht historisieren. Frauen*- und Geschlechtergeschichte vernetzen

We would like to invite you to the next F*GG LAB on 23.04.2026 at 18.30. We welcome interest and participation from colleagues at all university career levels, project staff, students, independent researchers – in short, anyone who is interested in the historicisation of gender and would like to join us in conversation. 

Prof Dr Birgit Lang (German Studies, The University of Melbourne)

TransTrans: Curating an exhibition

In September 2024, TransTrans: Transnational Trans* Histories, 1900s-1960s opened its doors to an Australian audience. This exhibition was funded through the Australian Research Council Grant DP190101816 Visual evidence: transforming modern sex research (1880s-1930s), and curated by Prof Birgit Lang and Assoc/Prof Katie Sutton (Australian National University Canberra).

The exhibition explored gender-diverse histories between the 1900s and the 1960s, and delved into the interactions among German and European, North American, and Australian trans individuals and communities, as well as their collaboration with scientific researchers on gender diversity. In this F*GG LAB, we will explore ethical, methodological and practical complexities of engaging with historical evidence of gender non-conformity from today's perspective.

We discuss questions such as
-how curators can ethically display archival photographs that were produced under unequal power relations;
-how curatorial selection and framing can mitigate the objectifying and violent logics of the medical gaze while still preserving historical evidence;
-what linguistic and terminological strategies best respect historical specificity while using contemporary, non harmful language for public display.

The talk will be held in English, the discussion afterwards in English and German.

Seminarraum 6 and Café Stein are accessible for all.

Afterwards: Café Stein, Währingerstr. 6-8, 1090 Vienna, 3 min walk.